1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image forming apparatus and method, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus and method which can properly perform staple and punch operations in accordance with statuses of recording sheets associated with image orientations.
2. Discussion of the Background
There have been provided image forming apparatuses such as digital copying machines, printers, and so on, having finish operations such as staple and punch operations, for example. For example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. JPAP09-261415 (1997) describes an image forming apparatus in which a staple function can be used to staple a stack of recording sheets which have undergone an image forming operation in a variety of staple patterns such as one or two positions on a top side edge, a bottom side edge, a left side edge, a right side edge or a corner of a recording sheet. This image forming apparatus judges a direction of a character string of a print image to perform an appropriate rotation so as to conduct a staple operation on the recording sheets which are sorted in a specific direction.
When a user attempts to print a document prepared on a host computer, the user generally gives a print command without knowing what sheet size and in which sheet orientation the sheet tray of the printer has recording sheets, particularly in network environments in which printers are often located beyond the view of the users. In such a situation, if the user sends a print command with staple and punch commands from a terminal computer to a network printer which can perform finish operations such as staple and punch operations, the network printer performs operations as instructed. As a result, the network printer may staple in a way different from what the user desired.